Hundreds of children 'detained in police cells'

Hundreds of children in
England and Wales were detained under the Mental Health Act and locked
in police cells because officers did not have anywhere else to take
them, the BBC has learned.

There were 305 detentions of under-18s in the first 11 months of
2013, Radio 4's the World This Weekend found.

Some were held for more than 24 hours, according to data released
under Freedom of Information laws.

The Department of Health said £25m was available to fund mental
health nurses.

The practice of detaining children suspected of being mentally ill
was first uncovered by the BBC in 2012.

Then, the data for 2011 showed there were 385 child detentions.

The latest information revealed that in 2012 there were 317
detentions.

'Shocking'

Some children were detained for long periods of time - including
17-year-olds held for more than 24 hours and 15-year-olds for between
eight and 15 hours.

Police have the power under the Mental Health Act to take people they
suspect of being mentally disturbed and who could be a danger to
themselves or others to a "place of safety" to be assessed by a doctor.

This detention may only last up to 72 hours.

Places of safety will usually mean a hospital, care home or any other
suitable place but, in exceptional circumstances, it may also be a
police station.

“Start Quote

The thought that either of my kids were
ill and that they finished up in a police cell, I regard as
abhorrent.”

Chief Constable Simon ColeACPO

In the case of children, this could mean an
adolescent psychiatric unit or a children's home.

Sarah Brennan, chief executive of charity Young Minds, described the
situation as "really shocking".

"[Children and young people] need to have appropriate care in the
appropriate setting and that should never be a police cell when they
have mental health problems."

The fact children were still being held in cells two years after it
was first reported was a "terrible indictment", she added.

But the Department of Health said it was trialling two schemes to
tackle the issue.

Under its "street triage" scheme, mental health nurses patrol with
the police to identify people who need immediate mental health support.

Extra funding had been made available for mental health workers to be
based in police stations and courts, the department said.

'Got to change'

The Association of Chief Police Officers welcomed the move, but the
association's spokesman on mental health said more needed to be done.

"We were in a position where there was every day at least one young
person statistically taken to a police cell," said Chief Constable Simon
Cole.

"We're now down to less than one person a day as an average. Has it
changed quickly enough and significantly enough? No it hasn't, and I
want that change to be quicker.

"I'm a father myself and the thought that either of my kids were ill
and that they finished up in a police cell, I regard as abhorrent."

So-called places of safety were, in many parts of the country, not
equipped to take on young people, he said, adding: "That's just got to
change."

Lorraine Khan from the Centre for Mental Health said the figures were
"hugely disappointing".

"The government is currently reviewing the code of practice for the
Mental Health Act and should look at ways this could help to stop
children being placed in police custody when they should be in a safe
hospital environment."

Professor Sue Bailey of the Royal College of Psychiatrists welcomed
the government's commitment to mental health but said the pace of change
needed to quicken.